Boeing 757-200 Moulds in 1/400 Scale

Updated: September 2016

This may come as a surprise to some of you given my classic leanings but my favourite aircraft type is probably the Boeing 757. I find it to be a massively satisfying aircraft both in terms of appearance and performance. Being the workhorse of the UK charter fleet there were always plenty at Gatwick when I was a kid, flying for the likes of Air Europe, Inter European, Monarch, Air 2000, Airtours, Flying Colours, Caledonian etc and of course whenever I visited Heathrow I was quickly bored by the stream of BA 757s. How lucky we were back then.

It is a bit of a shame therefore that like the L-1011 and MD80 it hasn't had the best deal in 1:400. Four manufacturers have made 757-200s but the best is seldom used and most have been done on one of the six versions of essentially the same mould (in the table I only breakdown four of the six versions into separate moulds). Here's the breakdown of the moulds and manufacturers.

As you can see within the 126 releases there has been a substantial amount of mould sharing between Gemini, Schuco and Phoenix:

Here are some shots of the 757 in action to provide some comparison to the models:

A mention should also be made of the engine options. 757s can be powered by either Rolls-Royce or Pratt & Whitney engines however there are more than 2 types. Early 757s built before late 1984 and powered by RRs used the Rolls-Royce RB211-535C whilst subsequently they used the RB211-535E4 (and similar looking E4B). The 535C has a shorter nacelle than the 535E4. Pratt & Whitney have used the PW2037 and PW2040 engine but the Rollers are much more popular. Here are the engines:

RB211-535C

RB211-535E4

PW2040

Onto the moulds:

Gemini Jets (2000) Moulds 1-4

As of August 2016 Gemini have made an impressive 88 models (four have also been rebadged as Schucos), however 62 of those have been from the United States of America examples which I guess is hardly a surprise given the 757s popularity in the USA and Gemini's focus. Even so there are always more 757s to be done especially classic 757s. Unfortunately the Gemini mould can't be used to replicate early 757s as it is fitted with the later RB211-535E4 and not the earlier Rolls-Royce RB211-535C, which was superseded in 1984. They do have however versions with the PW2040 engines.

I actually like the Gemini mould however as is well known its failings primarily centre around the undercarriage which is uber-chunky (especially the nosegear). I also think that on some models the cockpit windows are too small and misplaced which impacts the beauty of the model.

Until I actually started looking in detail at my 757s I didn't realise there had been four different Gemini 757 moulds. Prior to about 2001 the seam ran around the wing joint fairing whilst post 2002 or so they seam was modified and a smaller seam presented. Both of the first moulds still had a seam near the horizontal stabiliser but later that was remodelled and removed making three moulds. Then they have in recent years also released a version with winglets for four different versions all with close ancestry. Here is a comparison two of the moulds (US Airways mould no 1 / Delta mould no 3). Interestingly you can clearly see here the difference in cockpit printing. I actually prefer the larger US Airways printing:

Mould Version 1 (with RB211-535E4s) Mould Version 3 (with PW2040s)

Here's a selection of my Gemini 757s (the DL and UA have Pratts):

Dragon Wings (2002)

Dragon Wings entered the market rather late for them and have made only 9 757s in total. The mould is ok but again suffers from poor nosegear and often bad cockpit printing. On the plus side as with all Dragon moulds it is seamless around the wing but the tail as a separate item isn't so well fitted. I also think the nose is a bit heavy and snoopyish but its still a decent effort compared to some moulds from the same period.

Herpa (2005)

Herpa's actions are enough to make you cry. Some of their moulds are monstrosities whilst others are wonderful but whether beauty or beast it matters little as they barely use them! Herpa have so far made a paltry three models on their own mould with the Icelandair Hekla Aurora currently still at the pre-order stage. This is unforgiveable as the mould is superb and easily the best 1:400 757 in existence. What would it take to get Herpa interested in 1:400s? I don't know but since they've spent the money on the mould I just don't understand it.

Phoenix Mould 2 (2013)

As of Sep 2014 Phoenix have done 14 models using the earlier Gemini moulds but in 2013 they decided to modify the mould to fit rolling gears. That seemed like a sensible thing to do especially as the undercarriage of the Gemini mould is its major failing. However Phoenix have made a shocking mess of the change. Being Phoenix as per usual the wheels are far too large but worse the nosegear too is way too short giving the new version a bizarre nose-down stance which looks awful. My understanding is that this mould is now out of production, which is probably just as well.

Er Phoenix WTF have you done to this beauty?

Anyway there's a good mould fighting to get out here and with some mods to the undercarriage it would be a very good one. The 757 certainly deserves it. Sadly I get the feeling that there have been too many releases to make it worth Aeroclassics while making their own mould, which is a shame as there are plenty of older 757s that I'd like to see.

Below are some shots of some of my Geminis together. The Delta 97 colours and Eastern are mould 1, Northwest is mould 2 and Delta Widget mould 3: